Political Headlines – Osborne’s ‘regrets’ and more Budget reaction

Today’s political headlines cover Osborne’s ‘regrets’ about his time in Government, patronising schools funding, clawing back the tax cut and no-deal Brexit to cause a recession. 

Osborne admits to ‘regrets’
Interviewed by BBC Newsnight, former Chancellor George Osborne admitted to ‘regrets’ about his time in Government, including getting immigration policy wrong and playing into the message that ‘everything Brussels did was a challenge’. He said that each of these had contributed to the Government losing the EU membership referendum. He also regretted not repairing the banking system quicker, but defended his austerity policies.

Chancellor’s ‘little extras’ for schools branded patronising
The Daily Mirror says that teachers and parents have criticised the Chancellor over his claim that schools would receive £400m from the Budget to ‘buy little extras’. Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner described the move as ‘utterly insulting’ while Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Secretary, said that schools faced a £2bn funding shortfall.

Government to claw back half of Budget tax cut
The Daily Mail reveals that small print in the Budget means that half of the tax cut for higher-rate taxpayers would be taken back by the Government through increased National Insurance contributions. Former Pensions Minister Steve Webb, who now works for the insurance and pensions firm Royal London, said that Hammond ‘should have come clean and mentioned this in the Budget speech’.

No-deal Brexit would cause recession, ratings agency claims
The Guardian reports that the rating agency Standard & Poor’s has warned that a no-deal Brexit would lead to rising unemployment and falling incomes, leading to a recession. It warned that the chances of a no-deal Brexit had increased to the point where they might threaten the UK’s credit rating.

Number of Brits applying for Irish passports doubles
The Times says that the number of British residents applying for Irish passports has nearly doubled since the EU referendum, with 44,900 applications received between January and June. The paper adds that Caroline Nokes, the immigration minister, admitted yesterday that UK citizens could face delays at EU airports after Brexit. The Guardian adds that Nokes also told MPs that employers would have to check if EU nationals have the right to work in the UK after a no-deal Brexit, but didn’t know how they would be able to do so.

Ambassadors to be recruited from business leaders
The Daily Telegraph claims that Jeremy Hunt is to announce today that the UK will begin hiring business leaders rather than civil servants as ambassadors. The change forms part of a plan to recruit more ‘under-represented groups’ and will lead to the UK adopting a more US style of diplomacy, the paper claims.

Hancock to tackle assaults on NHS staff
According to the BBC, Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock will today set out new measures to reduce the number of assaults on NHS staff. More training on dealing with violent situations will be given to staff, while prosecutions will be sped up. Inspectors will examine NHS trusts’ plan to protect staff and a new recording system will be brought in.

McDonnell criticised for backing tax cuts
The Guardian says that Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell is facing a backlash from his own MPs after he said that Labour would not oppose the tax cuts for high earners in the Budget. He said that ‘we’re not going to take money out of people’s pockets’, but has been criticised for his stance by MPs including Yvette Cooper and David Lammy.

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